Agent Flow: Register Host and Report Applications

Why it matters

• See an up-to-date list of hosts and their apps
• Track version changes with history (no spreadsheets)
• React to version drift and vulnerabilities before they bite

How the flow works

1. First agent run → host appears in inventory
2. Agent reports discovered apps and versions
3. On version change, history is recorded
4. UI shows current state and trends

Team benefits

• Automatic app list refresh
• Change history for audits and incident reviews
• Foundation for alerts and update recommendations

Best practices

• Use a 5–10 minute interval for prod
• Separate tokens by environment
• Watch last_seen: if a host is silent, check the agent

Operational signals (what to watch)

• Freshness: last_seen should update each interval
• Coverage: all critical hosts have agents installed
• Change rate: spikes may mean mass updates or drift

When something breaks

• If a host stops reporting → check token validity and agent service
• If versions don’t change → ensure discovery plugins are enabled
• If too much noise → raise interval or tune what to track

Quick CLI snippet

# Check agent status on a host
sudo systemctl status versionops-agent

# Run once for a manual check
sudo versionops-agent run --once

Helpful links

• Docs: Agent setup
• Docs: Applications API
• Blog: Version discovery tips